The Way of Cats

No matter what breed you have, or what their coat is like, a consistent grooming schedule is an important part of good cat care. It’s a bonding ritual that will let you and your cat have fun times together, gets them used to handling, and helps you keep tabs on their health status. Here’s how to get this process started at any age.

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Grooming does more than reduce shedding and hairballs. Grooming lets the cat get used to human contact, by persuading them with a feel-good reward that is built into the process. If our cat is hand shy, or skittish about contact, a consistent grooming schedule is a way to connect with the cat.

• Start slow. Kittens will regard it as a game, adults will regard it as an intrusion. They will learn to see the fun in your approach with comb (long hairs) or brush (short hairs.) Start with a few strokes along the back, like petting, and with adults, try the back of the neck and then a face touch up. Follow with a treat. Let them wrestle with the tool at first. Later, when they learn to enjoy it for its own sake, they will stop doing that.
• Don’t push. This isn’t a task to be completed. Grooming stimulates the cat and they can get rowdy. If this happens, stop. It’s time for a treat. As the cat learns to relax and enjoy the petting aspect, you can cover more territory in a grooming session.
• Once the cat enjoys the grooming, don’t start with the face. Start with the tail, and work your way towards the face, which is their favorite part to be groomed. This way they learn to wait for their favorite part, and have more tolerance for touchy areas like hindquarters and belly. If they bail midway, let them. Come back the next day to go over the missed parts. Remember, fun.
• They will probably want the treat anyway, but get some token strokes in before you give it to them. Otherwise, they will milk the stuation.
• Take this opportunity to check their ears, their paws, and their teeth. They will put up with it for the reward they know is coming, which is the face fussing as much as the treat.
• Enjoy it. Get some petting and ear rubbing and affection in, and make it part of the grooming ritual.
• Don’t be offended if they go off and do touchups on your handiwork. This is part of coming down from the stimulation of the grooming, which cranks the cat up.

Grooming isn’t always about keeping the cat looking good, since most of them feel they are quite capable of that, thank you. Grooming is a way to connect with the cat and take care of them. So approach it with love, and they will respond.

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I am fortunate enough to have Mr. Bond, a very bright cat, in my household. He has challenged me to keep his intellectual side happy, since the usual cat toys, while appreciated, do not have the level of fascination and intrigue which he prefers.

He loves to come up with “affection games,” all on his own, so we can demonstrate our devotion towards each other.

Konfuse-A-Kat Kit: Research in Progress

If you have looked at my contest page, at the top of the blog, you’ll know I am offering five Third Prizes. That would be the Konfuse-A-Kat Kit, available exclusively through The Way of Cats.

Since I wouldn’t recommend anything I haven’t tried myself, The Cat Boys have become my field testers for this new kit, especially designed for those cats who are shy, timid, new to people, or need work on their communication.

That last category covers everyone!

As you can see, this beginning game is based on Rock, Paper, Scissors, an old favorite. But it’s my instructions that will let you play it with your cat. Even I have been astonished at the power this game has displayed.

Mr. Bond loves playing this dice game.

I’ve always used toys to get RJ out of the hallway and meet new people. He watches them for a little while, and then I get out the bird wand, or roll his trackball around, and he’s out within seconds to play, no longer thinking about the strangers in the living room.

While Mr. Bond and I have been close within minutes of our first meeting, this trust does not extend to other people. While he was always friendly towards Dear Husband, it took years for Mr. Bond to accept him into our Circle of Trust. Strangers? They are friends he figures he can do without.

Even treats will not get him to meet and greet.

But when I took out his favorite dice game while a friend was visiting, it drew him in from the hallway, and he played it right in front of them.

For Mr. Bond, this is huge.

I love it when a plan comes together.

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It is perhaps the least appealing part of cat care. Hairballs, at least, are usually announced beforehand, and we can try to direct the cat to some surface that can handle it better. Just be very cautious moving the cat under such stress. It’s often better to grab a tissue or paper towel and try to put it under the cat’s chin.

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Hairballs are the cat’s way of getting rid of the hair that is an inevitable part of their self grooming process. We can help the cat by sticking to our grooming routine, and offering two natural substances the cat seeks out for management help.

The first substance is what the cat will find in the wild. Grasses are a small but important part of the cat’s digestive system, and most cats love being offered pots of oats, rye, catnip, or such herbs as thyme, sage, or parsley. When cats have their own plants to eat, they are more likely to leave ours alone.

It’s this same instinct that drives them to our houseplants in the first place. Divert the need, and they will learn “mine” and “yours.” It’s best to make sure houseplants are safe, anyway, so here’s a handy list of non-toxic plants.

There’s also a malt syrup/mineral oil combination that makes the fur pass through the cat’s digestive system. Easier for everyone! I have not had any luck with the high fiber treats that are supposed to help, since my cats refuse to eat them. I think the high fat option is probably better for an animal who is a carnivore, since they do not need very much in the way of fiber.

Mr. Bond has a sensitive stomach, and I had to change his diet to a more meat based food. Before we got him straightened out, with Mr. Bond as nervous as an ingenue on opening night, I too often heard, “Honey, did we put away the augh-augh-augh!”

Which meant he had stepped on it.

Mr. Bond does not like to cause distress. On his own, he came up with fishing a dirty sock out of the hamper and putting it across the offending object.

So now what I heard was, “Hey, what’s this sock doing augh-augh-augh!”

Which meant Dear Husband had tried to pick up the sock.

Cats can also throw up from stress. Undigested food will have a different look, and needs to be addressed if it continues. But hairballs look the way they sound, and should not cause alarm.

A bottle of rug cleaner should be handy, and then our house is as fresh as anyone’s. A combination of a small amount of dishsoap with two parts water to one part vinegar works well and can be made up beforehand.

If something has lain unnoticed behind a chair long enough to dry up, a wet paper towel draped over it, and let to sit for a few hours, will let the carpet release all the problems.

Hairballs aren’t any fun, for us or the cat. We should try to make the problem “come up” as little as possible.

Apology for pun.

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There’s more ways to care for our cat with The Way of Cats than the article you are reading now. See all of my posts on CAT CARE.